I read that the animals in the zoo of NO were salvaged to a great extent. But what effort if any was available was made to salvage pets…dogs, cats, parrots and the like.
Fully aware that human life is at the top of the list, I hope that there was some organized effort before the levees ruptured to get the “animals out of town”.
Was there?
Most of them probably died, or will die in the coming days/weeks/months. People airlifted out of their homes could not take their pets with them. Nor could the people who made it to the Superdome or convention center. I imagine the ones in the flooded areas were probably left in apartments and houses, with the owners hoping to get back to them soon enough to save them (not likely). I would imagine a lot of caged birds were released - maybe we’ll see some new colonies of parrots and other exotic birds like they have in Florida.
The cats are probably best equipped to survive. They can scamper up trees and buildings to avoid flood waters, and live off of birds, mice, and other stuff. But what happens when the people come back? I’d imagine the cats will have turned feral and will be put down en masse.
Really, Really sad. 
(I like to think that some of the rescuers are pet owners who will bend the rules just a bit.)
I don’t see why they should. If a cat’s owner comes back and the cat manages to find its way home, then everything would go on as before, though I’m not sure how well equipped an indoor-only cat would be to deal with being out and alone. I don’t think a lost pet cat would become feral–it must take a generation or two for that to happen.
Contrary to popular belief, most house cats are not able to hunt with enough of a success rate to survive. Some outdoor cats can become quite skilled, but often when a cat brings in a bird, it is an older one that simply didn’t get away in time. Most feral cats in urban areas survive from dumpsters.
There are several groups actively working at this moment to rescue the pets in NO. The husband of our own dear Pinkfreud is one of them. Noah’s Wish and the Humane Society of the United States are also on site. Many thanks and hugs to these dedicated people.
But we’re not talking about a few days. They’re saying it may be months before people can go back in the city. After months of being left to their own devices, how many cats will have stayed in their own neighborhoods? If the food supply gets low, I’d expect they’ll start to wander.
As a dog owner, the thought of leaving my dog behind to fend for herself is pretty unbearable. So I hope those animals find a way to make it back to their loved ones. But the sheer numbers are daunting. How many loose cats are in that city now? 100,000? How many thousands of dogs? It’s hard to imagine that they’ll all be collected and cared for and placed in some facility where they can be reunited with their owners. If even 10% make it back to their families, it would be a miracle IMO.
I saw this on NOLA.com earlier but I can’t find it now so this is from http://www.thinknola.com (another great info site)
-Lil
SPCA help for animals
Friday, 9:50 p.m.
There’s hope for stranded pets in the New Orleans area. The Louisiana SPCA, New Orleans’ animal control agency, has begun rescuing pets from owners houses.
Louisiana SPCA director Laura Maloney said shelter workers follow other agencies and crews through neighborhoods and rescue pets, some that are locked in houses. At the owners’ request, “we break in,” she said.
Owners have to call or email the operation and give their name and address and information about where the pet is confined.
The hotline number is: 1-225-578-6111. E-mail should be sent to Katrinaanimalrescue@yahoo.com.
The hotline already is in effect, Maloney said. "It’s busy an awful lot. We are trying to get a bank of telephones